A Dragon's Nest
by mandaree1
Summary: Johnathan has always wondered about his children's aversion to sleeping on the couch and their incessant need to lock their bedroom doors. Now he knows.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own American Dragon; Jake Long**

**Title: A Dragon's Nest.**

**Summary: Johnathan has always wondered about his children's aversion to sleeping on the couch and their incessant need to lock their bedroom doors. Now he knows.**

**Warnings: It's been a long time since I wrote any American Dragon stuff, so I'm rusty. =)**

**...**

He'd seen it with other kids. His boss had chuckled one night during their at-home business meeting as his daughter drooped against his side before excusing himself to put her to bed. His co-workers would sometimes talk about how, when they worked overtime, their kids would attempt to stay up late to wait for them and how cute it was to come home to find them curled up on the couch, a children's show blaring in the background, the bright colors serving as a nightlight.

He'd never had that. If Haley stayed up to wait for him, Jake would stay up with her to keep her company. Jake himself usually went to bed early in the evening. Both of their doors were locked, and he had no real way of getting to them, even if it were to comfort them.

"It's completely normal." Susan had said one night as they sat next to each other in bed. "Most kids do it."

It'd never_ felt_ normal to him.

* * *

Haley used to fall asleep in the living room all the time.

Watching TV, doing homework, she'd even managed to conk out practicing the violin a couple of times.

Jake had never been one for sleeping anywhere other than his room. He used to nod off on the couch once in a great while, but he had always preferred the solitude of his bed and the privacy of his door.

Now neither of them slept anywhere except their rooms. Haley did her work in her room, practicing in her room, and recorded her shows to watch in daylight hours. Her door was locked at all times. If she was too far gone to escape to her bed herself, she'd ask Jake to help her to her room.

"It's okay, Dad, I got her." He'd grunt, easily maneuvering her into his arms without complaint. Haley would curl up in his arms, as though trying to hide herself away from him.

Sometimes, when Jake would pass, he'd feel a small blast of heat. He couldn't help but wonder if that was embarrassment, that she was so humiliated to fall asleep in front of her 'uncool' dad that she had to hide her face and blush.

Later on, after the Hong Kong Fiasco, he'd find out that she wasn't embarrassed, and that the heat was merely the concentration of two fire-breathing lizards sharing body heat.

* * *

Sometimes, in the dead of night, he could hear the sound of nightmares.

It was Jake, usually. He'd turn and kick and grunt and groan. Sometimes he'd even yelp. Every once in awhile he'd hear what he could only guess was a hand or foot slapping against the wall (his tail, actually, but he hadn't known Jake _had_ a tail at that point). Even Haley had the occasional bad dream, but she woke up rather quickly after only a few minutes of squirming and whimpering. Her door would open and shut and she'd cross the hall into Jake's room after knocking. She hadn't gone to sleep with them, to her _parents_, the people who were _supposed_ to protect her, for years.

But the doors stayed locked, and they never really left their rooms. Sometimes he'd wake them up by knocking or jiggling the door knob, and they'd yell a thank-you and good-night in return, but that was as far as things went. Maybe he was being paranoid?

* * *

Locked bedroom doors had been the last thing on his mind lately.

He wasn't all that freaked out by it. Not as much as he should be, at least. Most people, upon finding out they'd married into a family of fire-breathing lizards with sharp claws and wings, would've screamed, fainted, woken up moments later, then dashed towards the nearest exit.

So... yeah. It could be said that he was taking things better than most people would.

He _was_ really curious, though. He'd poked his nose into more old magic books the past month alone than he thought he ever would his entire life. He'd studied runes and spells and magic languages (conveniently skipping over any sections on dragons the books contained. How weird would it be if he had to learn about his family from a dusty old book instead of asking questions?)

Some things, however, didn't change. Jake still came home late, usually covered in different shades and odors of gunk and slime. He doesn't fault him like he used to- how could he when he's saving New York from evil?- and had quickly learned it's better _not_ to ask when he shoos the boy upstairs for a shower, holding his nose. Haley still has the best grades and a couple of colleges are already waiting to give her scholarships, and she still likes to poke and prod at her older brother (although, now that they aren't hiding anymore, the prods are directed more towards magic than school.) Things like that never truly changed, as he'd soon found out.

And it's still the same when Susan checks the wall clock in the kitchen with a sigh as she sits down to eat breakfast. "Jake must've unplugged his alarm again."

"I got 'em." He quickly stood, pushing the chair in behind him. "I'll be right back."

Banging on the door doesn't work like it used to, and neither does shouting his name. Finally, as a last resort, he's forced to start twisting and tugging on the door handle in the vain hope it'll wake the boy up.

The door swung open.

He blinked, staring at the partially open door as though it were alien. It _was_ alien.

He considered calling down for help, but thought against it. If Jake had left his door unlocked, then there had to be a reason for it. He'd never done it before, after all, and he knew that he was the one who usually woke him up when he slept in.

Pushing the door open the rest of the way open, he stepped into the room. Nothing seemed any different then it had been the last time he'd been in there; blue walls, clothing scattered around the room, a laptop perched on the table next to an old can of soda. It was like nothing had changed.

Unless, of course, you counted the pile of blankets and red scales curled up in the middle of the bed. Then, yeah, something definitely _was_ different.

The blankets had been pushed and tugged into a blue cocoon, the pillow hanging haphazardly off the edge, looking as though it hadn't been of use in years. Jake was curled on top of the blankets as tightly as physically possible, head resting on claws, tail wrapped around his side. His wings twitched a little, signaling he was dreaming (That was how it worked, right? Like a dog will dream of running and it's paws'll twitch. It's the same thing, right?), a small blast of fire floating out of his snout and into the air, heating the room. Swallowing, he moved to stand beside the bed, hand hovering mid-air.

"Uh, Jake?" He lightly grabbed a scaled shoulder, careful not to shake hard enough to be considered threatening. The _last_ thing he needed was for his son to mistake him for the enemy trying to drag him away in the middle of the night. "Er, Jakers? Jakerooni?"

"Huh?" Jake startled awake, pushing himself onto his front claws. Jonathan stepped back in surprise. He looked around the room before finally deeming it safe and relaxing, yawning and stretching, wings and tail easily brushing against the wall and end of the bed respectfully. "Dad?"

"It's, uh, it's breakfast time?" He thrust a thumb behind him, forcing himself to blink.

"It is?" Jake winced and slid off the side of the bed, casually pawing through the blankets, shifting them to his liking. "Sorry, my alarm broke. I'll be down in a sec."

"Oh, uh, sure! Take your time, I'm sure your mom will understand." He stepped backwards out of the room before turning and heading down the hall.

"Dad?"

He paused, sticking his head back into the doorway. "Yeah?"

"You sleep okay?"

"Er, yeah, I slept great. How about you?"

"Like a log."

"That's great. Um, you do realize..." He trailed off, pointing at his chest.

"Realize what?" He raised a claw to study it before glancing down and wincing. "Oh, sorry." He shifted back into his human for with a blast of blue fire, a sheepish grin on his face. "Didn't mean to give you an early morning scare, Dad."

"You didn't scare me. Just... surprised me, is all."

It was the same thing with Haley a few weeks later, only Haley had asked him to wake her up early for practice for an upcoming recital, and her pile of blankets were much neater and worked as a sort of cave to keep her warm instead of just a cushion to lay on. She'd also seemed quite at home in her scales, and had merely shrugged.

"Honey, do dragons... always change when they sleep?"

Susan glanced up from her book and watched him crawl under the covers, a quizzical look on her face. "Usually, yes. It takes more energy for us to stay in our human forms than it does to be in our dragon ones- considering they _are_ technically our true forms, not counting me, that is-, and we need that extra bit of energy for things like dream-walking." She sipped at her glass of tea before setting it on the bedside table. "You've seen their nests, I take it."

He nodded. "They left their doors unlocked."

Susan didn't look the least bit surprised. "They mentioned they would awhile ago. I wondered if they'd pulled through with it or not." She shrugged, leaning back against the headboard. "Haley was all for it, but Jake seemed a little apprehensive."

"Was that why they locked their doors?" She nodded. He clenched his fists. "They were scared of me, weren't they?"

"Scared of you finding out? Yes. You have to remember, Johnathan, they've been hiding it from you since they were old enough to know. Its not easy to let something like that go." She set a hand on his arm, squeezing it reassuringly. "Besides, how would you have reacted to seeing a large winged lizard snoring in their bed?"

"Before?" She nodded again. "Badly, I guess."

"Exactly." She dropped her arm. "Don't worry, they're done locking their doors. Heck, it wouldn't surprise me if Haley eventually starts falling asleep on the couch again. They trust you."

He smiled, feeling a small pit in his stomach untangle, just a little, as he settled back in their bed and the matter was dropped for good.

**No flames! Don't like don't read! Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own American Dragon Jake Long**

**Title: A Dragon's Nest**

**Summary:** **Johnathan has always wondered about his children's aversion to sleeping on the couch and their incessant need to lock their bedroom doors. Now he knows.**

**Author's Note: So, I decided to write a seriously fluffy sequel. And here it is.**

**...**

Haley was a dragon.

Alright, so Jake had known that, but still. Grandpa's warnings were one thing; pink scales and tiny wings were another.

It was weird, not being the only scaled creature in the house anymore. Nice, but weird. Especially since that meant he had to start picking up the slack, reminding Haley not to transform when dad was home, giving her advice to better her flying, showing her his nest and helping her make her own…

Okay, so maybe _that _was what had made him the most uncomfortable. His nest was _personal_, and Haley had been digging around in it and messing it up like it was totally her business, and, call it an instinct, but his temper had flared and made him grit his teeth.

Looking was one thing. Touching was a whole 'nother ballgame.

He'd just lain down and rolled over on his bed when Haley's door creaked open. He didn't pay it much mind, but then he slowly realized that the tiny footsteps _weren't _heading for the stairwell or the bathroom.

Oh, crud. Nightmare. Jake knew the feeling.

He was out the door and down the hall before he even realized he'd moved, stopping Haley mid-doorknob grab with a hand on her shoulder.

Haley glanced at him. "Jake?"

Jake didn't return the greeting. "You plannin' on going in like that?"

"Huh?" Haley looked herself over, then jumped back. "Oh _no_. I can't let him see me like _this_!"

Jake knew that. It was part of the reason he felt so dang _vulnerable_, standing just outside his parent's door, red scales practically on display should anyone decide to open the door or pass by after a visit to the kitchen, or something. But he hadn't had the_ time_ to change, so here he was, nervously twitching his tail, trying his hardest to explain something he just_ knew_.

"But… If he can't see me sleeping, what am I going to do?" Haley shifted on her hind claws, mumbling. "I don't wanna go back to my room."

Oh, yeah, like Jake knew the answer to that. He was a teenage _boy_, not a miracle worker.

But he_ was_ also a big brother, and it was kinda his _job_ (besides, you know, the whole 'protect the country' thing) to help out his younger sibling at times like this. Jake sighed. "_Fine_. You can sleep in my room."

Haley's snout wrinkled. "But your room smells."

"Got any better ideas?" Because Jake was more than open to suggestions.

"Ulgh, fine." Haley sighed. "If I _have _too."

"Alright then, Ms-smooth-talker. Sleep in your own dang bed."

Jake started to turn away, but Haley grabbed his midsection, and maybe he'd gone a_ little_ too far on this one. "No!"

"Come'on, let's get out of the hallway." He gently pried her off of him and resolved that his nest was going to get messed up, _again_, but it'd be for a mostly good cause. Not 'to protect and save the world' good, but close enough. "We don't want dad wakin' up and seein' us."

"Jake?"

"Yeah?"

"Dad... he really doesn't _know_, does he?"

"No, he doesn't. And he's not gonna, either." He opened his door and locked it behind them as a precaution. It wasn't like his parents ever went in his room at night or anything, but old habits die hard. "Get some sleep."

"Jake, would it be weird if I said I want to curl up with you?"

"Nah. It's a lizard thing; body heat, and all that stuff. Grandpa explained it to me once, but I wasn't really listening."

"That's okay. I think I get the idea." Haley curled against his side with a sigh, and Jake refused to admit to himself that he _really_ wanted to curl up back. "Goodnight, Jake."

"Goodnight, Haley."

A pause. "Jake?"

"What?"

"Do your stinkin' laundry."

"Whatever, pushy. Maybe this weekend."

* * *

Jake slept in the bathroom during the odd sleepover with Trixie and Spud. The door was always locked.

Awkward? Yeah. But it was also totally necessary.

Sure, his friends knew now, but they didn't _get it_. They thought his dragon form was a guise; a secret identity, like a superhero. The fact that he_ wasn't fully human_ hadn't sunk in yet.

"Jakey? You awake?"

Jake jerked up and transformed, scrambling to get out of his sleeping bag. It'd be so much better if he could just _make his nest _like anyone else and sleep like a _dragon_ instead of cramming himself into a makeshift _bag_. (Yes, it was driving him up the wall. How'd you figure it out?)

He unlocked the door and opened it with a creak. "I'll, uh, just get out of your way, then."

"Relax, Jakey, I'm fine. I just gotta ask you somethin'."

"_Okay_ then?"

"Do ya really need to sleep in my bathroom? 'Cause tile floor _can't_ be comfortable to sleep on."

No, no it wasn't. Especially when you had scales. Tile tended to suck the warmth right out of you. "It's fine, Trixie. Just not comfortable sleepin' in your room."

"Gee, thanks." She paused. "Look, Jake, I'm just gonna ask this. Is this some sorta dragon thing? 'Cause if it is, that's cool."

No one could ever say that Trxie pulled her punches. "Huh?"

"You heard me. Is it a dragon thing or not?"

"I, well... yeah. Look, Trix, you and Spud just don't get it, okay?"

Trixie, being Trixie, took that as a challenge. She crossed her arms. "Okay then. Explain it to me."

"I'm a _dragon_, Trixie. This-" He gestured to himself. "This is me- but it isn't. The scales and wings are me too. I'm never gonna be completely human."

She raised an eyebrow. "Uh, duh. That's a given."

"I'm not done yet. Dragon's... we sleep in nest kinda things. I can't keep up my human form in my sleep. It'd be kinda like you tryin' to act like a dog when you're snoring away, or something. I can't control it. How would you react if you woke up one morning to find a huge scaly lizard sleeping on your floor? Be honest."

Trixie's other eyebrow joined the first. She didn't look the least bit worried. "That's it? Seriously? Man, I thought we were _over_ this. Friends don't freak out when friends sleep in their scales. I was more worried you sleep-fly, or somethin' crazy like that." She grabbed his arm and yanked him out the bathroom door. "Now get your irritatin' butt out here and curl up on a proper bed. Er, nest. Sorry."

"You sure?"

"Hey, as long as you don't set anything on fire, we cool."

"Well..." He rubbed his shoulder. "Dragon's tend to breathe smo-"

"Don't-" She raised a hand to chest-level. "Finish that sentence. I'll crack a window. If it gets to bad we'll just toss you out onto the fire escape."

It was kind of awkward at first, sleeping on the floor for the first time in years, but Trixie and Spud made it a point not to stare at him for any great length of time, and no one complained when he stole an extra blanket to curl up on.

"Man, that nesting thing you guys do looks seriously comfortable." Spud fluffed his pillow. "Like, seriously. I don't know why we humans sleep like we do when nesting exists."

Jake chuckled and curled up, drifting off. It was the best sleep he'd had in ages- and the best part of it was, he wasn't stuck sleeping in the bathtub, or something.

**Author's Note: I should've finished this a while ago, honestly, but I've been lazy. Anyway, here's some seriously fluffy American Dragon stuff for you.**

**No flames! Don't like don't read! Review!**


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